Marine mine



A. H. SELLMAN Oct. 6, 1964 MARINE MINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 30, 1962 RoBEr-rL; KA HN ATTY A. H. SELLMAN Oct. 6, 1964 MARINE MINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 30, 1962 fizz/97%? fiZZaf-7H BY ROBERTL.KAHNATW u m I A. H. SELLMAN 3,151,555

MARINE MINE Oct. 6, 1964 Filed April 50, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 zi lfleflifldellmarz' ROBERTL-KAHNATTY Oct. 6, 1964 A. H. SELLMAN MARINE MINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 30, 1962 III lllu w Q J34 J35 United States Patent 3,151,555 MARINE MINE Albert H. Sellrnan, 1623 Roxanna Road NW., Washington, D.C. Filed Apr. 30, 1%2, Ser. No. 191,374 14 Claims. (til. 102-10) This invention relates to an explosive type of mine and more particularly to a mine for use in water and beach areas during war-time operations. The mine forming the subject matter of the present application is particularly useful in defending against landing operations on a beach where water depth of from 2 to or 12 feet may be encountered or in rivers, harbors and estuaries. The mine forming the subject matter of the present application however may have use in deeper waters, as will appear in connection with a full description of the invention.

Mines for use in ocean waters have reached a high degree of development and may be designed to be triggered or set off by various forces and influences, some of which are extremely minute in magnitude. Such highly developed mines, while extremely sensitive, are very complicated, expensive to manufacture, require extensive development and manufacturing preparations for production. As a rule, such sensitive and highly developed mines require very elaborate assembly technique and highly trained personnel to sow in desired locations. As a rule, mines of this character cannot be scattered in large quantities in a given area and suifer from the serious drawback of requiring careful and extensive preparations for sowing. It follows therefore that with present day mines, the sowing of a mine field is essentially a project which requires considerable care and fore-thought and considerable time for the execution of the plan.

In contrast to the above, the mine forming the subject matter of the present invention is relatively simple to manufacture and assemble and may be stored, handled and sown with relatively little preparation. An' important advantage of the new mine resides in the fact that it is relatively insensitive to anything but a direct shock designed to trigger the mine. Thus the new mine is immune to accidental discharge by such events as storms, the flow and ebb of the tide, or even the shock of a neighboring mine going off several feet away in water. The mechanical simplicity of the mine together with the fact that little skill and training are necessary for handling the mine makes it possible to postpone sowing of a mine field until the very last moment when a mine field is desired. This is particularly desirable in military operations for the reason that sowing of a mine field may be delayed to the last minute pending other developments without the necessity for elaborate preliminary planning of this particular operation as part of an overall military operation.

An important feature of the new mine resides in its ability to be assembled to its final operative condition at the place of use so that the new mine does not have to be shipped any long distances in a sensitive or dangerous condition. The new mine includes means for locking the mechanism against any operation until the mines have been sown or released, after which a positive unlocking operation is required to arm or sensitize the mine.

The new mine embodying the present invention is independent of all electrical devices such as batteries, electrical circuits or electrical contacts and thus does not deteriorate with time. In addition, the new mine embodying the present invention does not rely upon any energy stored in any mechanical element, such as for example a cocked spring. Such devices are dangerous for thereason that the safety locks may fail. Thus such mines are potentially dangerous when they should be safe. In distinction to the above, the new mine obtains the energy for the initial firing impulse from the target itself. In case of a small vessel or landing craft, the mechanical energy of the moving craft is so great that a small amount of such energy may be easily relied upon for firing the mine. This has the advantage of permitting the use of mechan ically rugged parts which are positive in operation and which are completely reliable and potentially foolproof. Furthermore, it permits of the use of positive safety locks for locking the mechanism against firing prior to sowing.

A further advantage of the new mine embodying the present invention resides in the fact that it is sealed against Y corrosive effects of seawater, growth of marine plants and the entry into the mechanism of sand and other harmful objects. In distinction to the above, the firing mechanism in the new mine will be retained in an environment such as oil or the like, which will amply protect the parts against corrosion, dirt and marine growths.

The firing mechanism in the new mine is susceptible to manipulation for firing in a variety of manners. This has the outstanding advantage of permitting the mine to be positioned in a number of different manners for discharging the same in a large variety of fashions. Thus the new mine embodying the present invention has a wide range of applications in the field making its use highly flexible and easily adaptable to a wide variety of field conditions.

In general, the'new mine embodying the present invention comprises a'number of well defined separate assemblies. One assembly which may be designated generally,

as the high explosive assembly, consists of an annular or doughnut shaped housing within which is packed a desired quantity of high explosive. The annular or doughnut shape is most suitable for certain applications. However, a rectangular or other shape may be used. The nature of the high explosive, for the purposes of this invention, is unimportant and any desired amount and kind of high explosive may be used. As a rule, such high explosives are relativity immune to most shock and require detonators or boosters to explode the same. In the new mine, the high explosive assembly may be completely sealed and pre-packed'and does not require opening at any time after the manufacture of the assembly.

Disposed within what might be designated as the hole in the doughnut is one or more firing mechanisms, each of which includes not only mechanical means for firing a detonator, but a detonator for setting off a shock wave together with a booster which is set oif by the detonator and which in turn explodes the main charge of high explosive. Each firing mechanism essentially is a trigger mechanism cooperating with one rod which is axially disposed with reference to the entire doughnut-shaped mine and which is longitudinally movable from an initially biased position over a limited range for mine operation. This rod passes through two opposed flexible walls of a sealed housing within which one or more firing mechanisms are housed. This housing occupies space within the so called doughnut. The flexible walls of the housing provide a hermetic seal against anything from the outside of the housing reaching into the interior of the housing and permits the rod to move as required for the operation of the mine without destroying the'nature of the hermetic seal. Rigid means in the form of spiders at the two ends .of the mine guide the rod for linear travel. At the same time however, the flexibility of the housing wall coupled with the fact that all space within the housing not used by the firing mechanism itself is taken up substantially by any suitable incompressible liquid such as oil. The construction is such that the housing permits any external shock waves transmitted through the water to balance out within the interior of the housing for the firing mechanism and thusrenders the firing mechanism relatively immune to false operation as a result of a mine going ofi in the general neighborhood. At the same time, the presence of a substantially incompressible liquid within the firing mechanism housing provides an ideal coupling for transmitting a shock wave from a detonator to a booster or from a booster to a high explosive charge.

Since the firing mechanisms are similar, only one need be described in detail. Disposed within the housing is a trigger mechanism for firing, this mechanism including a firing pin and a spring. The rod is coupled to the trigger mechanism and the function of the spring is to store energy resulting from the movement of the rod to a predetermined point, after which the trigger mechanism operates so that the energy stored in the spring is released to actuate a firing pin for exploding the sensitive portion of a conventional detonator assembly. Means are provided for mechanically locking the rod against longitudinal movement to prevent any accidental firing of the mine. Such locking means acts upon the rod at a portion thereof external to the housing for the firing mechanism. Thus manual or externally actuated release means for arming the mine in no way interferes with the hermetic nature of the seal.

The new mine embodying the present invention is sufficiently versatile to be provided with various mechanical accessories for setting the mine off in a variety of fashions, under widely different conditions and by different means.

In order that the invention may be fully understood, reference will now be made to the drawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated, to-

gether with various means for activating the mine.

FIGURE 1 is an elevation with certain parts broken away of a complete mine package embodying the invention and including in the package an anchor and a storage compartment.

FIGURE 2 is a view, on a somewhat larger scale than illustrated in FIGURE 1, with certain parts broken away and in section, of the mine of FIGURE 1 with the anchor dropped from the body of the mine and the storage compartment open with the mine in position for active use.

FIGURE 3 is an elevation of the top portion of the mine embodying the present invention with certain parts broken away illustrating the disposition of a pair of horns for firing the mine.

FIGURES 4 and 5 are details illustrating modified mountings for the firing horns of the mine.

FIGURE 6 is a sectional elevation with certain parts broken away of the new mine.

FIGURE 7 is a sectional detail on line 77 of FIG- URE 6.

FIGURE 8 is a perspective detail of a detonator cartridge.

FIGURE 9 is a section along line 9-9 of FIGURE 6.

FIGURES 9A and 9B are sections on lines 9A9A and 9B9B respectively of FIGURE 9.

FIGURES l0 and 11 are respectively top views and elevations of the mine assembly, with certain parts broken away.

FIGURE 12 is a sectional detail on line 12-42 of FIGURE 10.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, the mine package comprises mine portion 10, below which is disposed anchor portion 11 and above which is disposed float portion 12 and beyond the float portion is storage compartment portion 13 provided with cover 14. It is understood that the mine package illustrated in FIGURE 1 is shown in a standing position but can be disposed in any desired position. Mine portion has tie bands 16 and 17 disposed at opposite ends thereof, these tie bands consisting of steel bands suitably anchored to the outer wall of mine 10. Similarly, anchor portion 11, which may be of concrete or metal to provide weight, is provided With tie band 19. Anchor portion 11 may be bolted to mine portion 10 by tie strips 20 disposed at angularly spaced positions around the circumference of tie bands 17 and 19.

Bolts engaging suitable threaded recesses within the tie bands serve to maintain tie strips 20 and thus serve to retain anchor portion 11 tightly in position against mine portion 10.

Similarly, float portion 12 is rigidly secured to mine portion 11D by its own tie band bolted to tie band 16 in a manner as described in connection with the anchor portion. In the same manner, storage compartment 13 has one band portion which is used to attach the same to the top of float portion 12. Cover 14 for the storage compartment may be press fitted or may be maintained in position by a few screws so that cover 14 may be easily removed without necessarily disengaging the other portions of the mine package.

Storage portion 13 will contain rope, horns and other gear for permitting a mine package to be handled and sown. Thus for example, the storage compartment may have a few tools such as a wrench so that the locking bolts for attaching the various parts of the package to each other may be removed.

Referring to FIGURE 2, it will be noted that the mine portion 10 has eye rings 22 attached thereto at spaced points. Eye rings 22 may have ropes 23 going to ring 24 from which ring length 25 of metal rod, metal chain, wire or flexible rope extends down to and is rigidly attached to anchor portion 11. Part 25 and rope 23 may be as long as desired so that anchor portion 11 can be as far below mine 10 as desired. The top of anchor portion 11 will be suitably shaped to accommodate the irregular surface of mine portion 10, this being due principally to the safety lock to be described later. The top mine portion 10 has projecting upwardly therefrom eye member 28 and as will be more fully explained, upward movement of eye member 28, after release of the safety lock, will serve to fire the mine. This upward movement of eye member 28 may be obtained in a variety of fashions.

As illustrated for example in FIGURE 2, rope 30 is attached to eye member 28 and goes to metal ring 31. Metal ring 31 is provided with rope 32, the bottom of which has metal fixture 33 which is temporarily locked into metal sleeve 34 disposed on bottom wall 35 of the storage compartment. Metal fixture 33 is locked to sleeve 34 by a soluble washer 36 of salt or other chemical which has the characteristic of dissolving in water, ocean water or fresh water as desired, after a predetermined period of time. Such washers are well known and generally consist of common salt compressed tightly and provided with an outer protective layer of material which impedes the access of water to the salt. By varying the density of the compacted salt and controlling the dimensions and other characteristics, it is possible to maintain the locking action due to the washer for any desired period of time. While washer 36 is effective, link 31 can not be pulled up to exert any force through rope 30 upon firing eye member 28 of the mine. Hence, even though the mine has the various tie bolts and tie strips removed to separate the portions of the mine package and even though the safety lock to be described later has been removed, the mine can still be considered safe until washer 36 dissolves.

Storage portion 13 has the wall thereof provided with suitable brackets upon which there may be pivoted horns 38 in various positions and at various points. As illustrated in FIGURES 3 to 5 inclusive, a variety of horns may be provided and the pivotal arrangement can be varied so that a horn may be actuated by movement in any desired direction. As illustrated in FIGURE 3 for example, horn 38 is pivoted at 40 and has aperture 41 at the small end thereof threaded with rope 42 going to eye member 28 of the mine. Each horn has its own rope which is independently tied to eye member 28 so that the movement of any one horn, such as right hand horn 38 in FIGURE 3, to the dotted line position will serve to pull eye member 28 upwardly as seen in FIGURE 3 and thus fire the mine. It is understood that the firing arrangements illustrated in FIGURES 3 to 5 inclusive are modified forms of the arrangement illustrated in FIG- URE 2. Further modified firing arrangements may be provided, this illustrating the flexibility of the new mine. Preferably stop pins 45 are provided to define the normal horn position.

Generally speaking, the parts of the entire mine package exposed to water may be made of steel and painted to protect the same against corrosion and fouling. It is also possible to make all these parts out of plastic, it being understood that the plastic will have to be dimensioned properly to withstand the mechanical loads involved.

Mine portion has outer housing 50 (FIGURE 11) which may be of metal or suitable plastic and has a generally doughnut (toroidal) shape, the cross section being conveniently rectangular. This may be varied to suit requirements. Housing 50 has disposed therein a suitable charge of high explosive. The high explosive may be cast into the housing and the housing sealed in any desired fashion. The thickness and strength of the housing are not important in themselves and if the explosive charge within the housing is strong and incompressible, the housing wall itself can be relatively thin.

Inner wall 51 of the high explosive housing is the wall which will receive the shock wave from a detonator or booster. Accordingly, it is important that good coupling for such shock wave be provided through inner wall 51 of the housing to the high explosive charge within the housing. The technique of obtaining a good shock coupling through wall 51 of the housing is well known and understood in this art. Thus as an example, wall 51 of the housing can be of steel between about and in thickness this range of thickness generally providing good protection for the high explosive charge insofar as handling is concerned, but being sufiiciently flexible so that a high explosive shock wave impinging upon the wall will pass through the metal and explode the main charge within housing 50. It is understood that intimate contact between the high explosive charge and the interior surfaces of the housing walls will be provided so that the shock wave transmitted through inner wall 51 can be effective.

Doughnut shaped housing 50 has top and bottom walls 53 and 54 respectively, these being sufliciently heavy so that the mechanical forces necessary to support the mechanism to be described can be accomplished; Disposed in a circular pattern on top wall 53 of the outer housing are lugs 56. As illustrated in FIGURE 10, four such lugs are provided, although it is to be understood that the number may be varied. The lugs consist of flat metal plates having apertured portions through which belts 58 pass. All the lugs are similar and the bolt means are similar, so that only one need be described in detail. Bolt 58 has top end threaded portion 59 provided with nuts 65 and 61 on opposite sides of lug 56. Cooperating with bottom wall 54 of the doughnut-shaped housing 50 are Z-shaped lugs 63 which have portions 64 and 65 for cooperating with the housing and the bottom of bolt 58. The bottom of bolt 58 is provided with nuts 66 and 67 on opposite sides of lug portion 65. Loosely disposed against bottom nuts 61 of the top group of nuts is metal spider or member 70 having flange portion 71 (FIGURE 6). Member 70 may be a spider or may be a plate provided with a large number of apertures. Member 70 is preferably dished upwardly to be concave as seen from the top of the mine. Flange portion 71 is flat, as illustrated in FIGURE 6. Bottom spider 72 having flange 73 is provided so that flange portion '73 is loosely disposed around bolt 58 against the inside faces of nuts 66. The purpose of spiders 70 and 72 are to protect the rest of the mine mechanism against damage by rocks and other dangerous objects, as well as to provide guiding journals for the rod used in operating the mine. This will be more fully explained later.

heads and are turned to be tight.

Clamped between spider flanges 71 and 73 is outer 7 housing wall 75 having a cylindrical shape. Disposed on the inside of wall 75 are three sleeve housing members 76, 77 and 78 of the same thickness and in end to end relation. The double wall housing consisting of outer wall 75 and the three end toend sleeves 76 to 78 inclu sive are clamped tightly between spider flange portions 71 and 73. In addition, between the very edges of the double housing Wall so far described and spider flange portions 71 and 73 are disposed edge portions 80 and 81 of flexible top and bottom wall members 82 and 83. Flexible wall members 82 and 83 may be of rubber, plastic or any material which will withstand water for any desired length of time and which has flexibility. These members have concentric beads along the peripheral portions and are annularly corrugated to permit inner beaded edges 84 and 85 to move generally axially of the entire housing. The edges of the metal cylinder housings lie between the concentric peripheral beads of wall members 82 and '83 and thusthe wall member edges are locked; The housing double wall thickness consisting of outer wall 75 and inner sleeves 76 to 78 inclusive need not be very strong, for the reason that no great clamping force is necessary for sealing the housing thus described. This is based upon the fact that there will be little, if any, pressure differential between the inside and outside of this housing, except for a possible counter mine blow, so that the force tending to make for leakage in or out of the housing is negligible. If desired, flexible wall members 82 and 83 may have fabric reinforcement therein, if the material is of rubber, so that the flexible wall members will resist abrasion and have substantial strength. The thickness of the flexible wall members need not be great and in practice a thickness of the order of about from Ms" to A will be more than ample. Whatever mechanical strength is necessary for flexible walls 82 and 83 will be occasioned by the forces created incident to handling the complete mine prior to sowing. Once a mine is in water, the flexible walls are subject. to little pressure diiferentials, irrespective of the depth of the mine, until the mine is exploded.

Inner beaded edges 84 and 85 of flexible housing walls 82 and 83 are tightly clamped between opposing metal members. Metal members 86 and 87 clamp beaded edge 84 between them while metal members 88 and 89 clamp beaded edge 85 between them. Metal members 86 and 87 are large nuts which are disposed on threaded portion 90 of heavy tubular rod member 93. Similarly, metal members 88 and 89 are also large nuts which are disposed on threaded portion 91on tubular rod member 93. Each pair of nut members is grooved to accommodate the Threaded portion 90 has a larger outside diameter than the rod portion above it, while threaded portion 91 has a smaller diameter than the rod portion above it. Tubular rod portion 93 may be considered as having three parts, 93a above threaded portion 90; 93b between threaded portion 90 and threaded portion '91; 930 comprising the part of rod 93 from threaded portion 91 to the bottom. Part 93a of tubular rod 93 has the top free end externally threaded to accommodate fixture 28 which functions as a cap to seal the top end of rod 93 and also to provide an eye for mechanical connection.

Part 93b has the top portion thereof enlarged to provide portion 95 of increased outside diameter. Enlarged At the bottom of guide Disposed around rod member 93 and supported within inner housing sleeve portion 77 is a trigger and detonator assembly. This assembly consists of massive hub portion 105 from which radiate four spider arms 106 and 107 as one pair and 108 and 109 as a second pair. Arms 106 and 107 extend to the inside surface of housing ring 77 and as illustrated in FIGURE 9, are Welded thereto. Any other means for attaching arms 106 and 107 to sleeve 77 may be used, providing the outer surface of sleeve 77 is free from projections to permit housing cylinder 75 to be slid into position.

Arms 108 and 169 are detonator and trigger support arms. Each of these arms are slotted at 111 at the inner arm parts extending from the hub as shown in FIGURE 7. Hub 105 of the support spider is divided into two vertically spaced portions 165a and 1051) as seen in FIGURE 6. Upper hub portion 105a is provided with a clearance passage which is large enough to accommodate enlarged portion 95 of rod 93. Hub portion 1051b has a round passage which is just large enough to accommodate smaller part 93b of the rod.

Each support arm 108 and 109 is slotted, as has been previously indicated, and disposed in slots 111 are trigger mechanisms. Thus in each support arm slot 111, there is disposed bell-crank 112 for pivotal movement in vertical planes. Each bell-crank 112 is pivotally supported on pin 113 passing transversely through and press fitted in suitable apertures in each support arm. Bell-crank 112 has a firing pin portion 112a and trip portion 11217. Springs 114 are provided for biasing each bell-crank to move the firing pin portion outwardly away from rod 93. The coil spring portion of each spring may be wound around a projecting portion of pin 113 with the ends of the coil spring bent and braced respectively against the support arm and bell-crank. Preferably, and as illustrated in FIGURES 6 and 7, the two ends of each coil spring extend on opposite sides of each support arm to prevent the spring from becoming loose. Pins 113 are large enough to have a tight driving fit in the support arms with the bell-crank being freely movable around the pin.

Trip portion 112]) of each bell-crank rides in guide slots 96 and 97 of enlarged portion 95 of rod 93. Upon upward movement of rod 93, trip portions 112b of each bell-crank will remain in the position illustrated in FIG- URE 6 until shoulders 99 and 100 on rod 93 rise sufiiciently to engage the trip end portions of the bell-cranks. By properly proportioning the depth of guide slots 96 and shoulders 99 and 100 and the size of trip portions 112b of the bell-cranks, as rod 93 rises, shoulders 99 and 100 will engage trip portions 112b and turn the bellcranks against their respective spring biases. After a certain amount of upward movement of rod 93, trip portions 11211 of the bell-cranks will slip past the outer edges of shoulders 99 and 100 and will permit the bell-cranks to be snapped by springs 114 back to the positions illustrated in FIGURE 6.

Support arms 108 and 109 carry at their outer ends detonator barrels 121 extending radially from hub 105. These barrels have externally threaded end portions 123. The ends of these barrels stop short of the inside surface of housing ring 77. Disposed within each barrel is sleeve 124 having the outer end portion flanged at 125 to enclose the outer end of the barrel. Flanged portion 125 is internally threaded and can cooperate with barrel threaded portions 123. Each sleeve 124 has disposed therein detonator cartridge 126 provided with external flange 127 at the end thereof. Flange 127 of the detonator cartridge will be at the inside end of sleeve 124 when positioned in the barrel. This flanged end of the cartridge is the percussion end to be struck by the firing pin.

Detonator cartridge 126 is somewhat longer than detonator sleeve 124 and when properly positioned will normally project beyond the outer end of sleeve 124. For ready assembly, it is preferred to have suitable openings 77a in housing sleeve 77 to permit the' endwise insertionof the detonator sleeve and cartridge. It is understood that outer housing sleeve will not be in position at this time, so that each adjustable sleeve and detonator cartridge can be properly positioned in each support arm after the detonator and firing spider has been rigidly secured to sleeve 77. It will be understood that this positioning of the detonator sleeve and cartridge in each support arm occurs after rod 93 is present within the housing.

In the assembled mine, coil spring 130 around rod portion 93b is disposed between the bottom face of hub portion 1051: and nut 88. As shown in FIGURE 6, this coil spring is under slight compression. In the condition illustratedin FIGURE 6, the amount of compression of spring 136 is not important and can just be sufficient to take up play.

Rod portion 93:: extends below threaded portion 91 of the rod and has blind or solid end portion 131 which terminates the bore extending up to the top end of rod 93. Solid end portion 131 has a transverse passage through it for accommodating safety locking rod 132 terminating in ring 133. Ring 133 may be below bottom 54 of high explosive housing 50 (rod 93 being long enough to permit rod 132 to be straight) and can have a safety release rope attached thereto. Guide sleeve 134 can be provided at housing bottom 54 for steadying rod 132. It will be understood that rod 132 must be pulled out of solid portion 131 before any firing action can occur. Instead of a long solid rod, a short heavy pin can be used for threading through portion 131 and a chain or rope can be used for pulling the short pin out. To brace the locking part of pin 132 where it extends from solid part 131, bottom plate 72 is provided with tubular extension 135 extending down so that the bottom edge can engage rod 132. The length of tubular extension 135 is so selected that when looking rod 132 is in position, tubular rod 93 can not move up or down. Upward movement of rod 93 is prevented by safety rod 132. Downward movement is prevented by bottom nut 89 bearing against the inside face of bottom end plate 72. The parts are so proportioned that rod 132 is firmly held in place and will require a strong pull to remove the safety rod. Tubular member 93 has transverse opening 137 just above nut member 88. This transverse opening provides liquid communication between the bore in tubular member 93 and the region around member 93 within the housing. Screw plug 138 is provided in the wall of portion 930. In the absence of screw plug 138, a passage from the outside to the bore within rod 93 is provided. This passage is located close to the bottom blind end of the tube bore as seen in FIGURE 6. Access to screw plug 138 is provided by opening 139 in tubular extension 135 when the mine is as shown in FIGURE 6.

Disposed on the outside of outer housing sleeve 75 are lugs for supporting booster charges at regions opposite where the detonator cartridges are located. Booster charges 140 and 141 are shaped to fit the curvature of the detonator housing as well as the high explosive housing, and may be packaged in suitable housings of their own. Thus the booster charges may be disposed in metal or plastic having sufiicient mechanical strength and resistance to corrosion to function. In connection with the housing for the booster charges, the inner walls lying opposite the detonator cartridges must be thin enough so that together with the metal making up housing sleeve 75 they will transmit the shock Wave from the detonator cartridges. No attempt has been made to show proportions of wall thickness or wall material and it is understood that in practical embodiments, the two wall thicknesses through which the detonator shock wave must pass will be properly designed for transmission of the shock wave.

To support the booster charges in position, top and bottom lugs 142 and 14-3 and side lugs 145 and 146 are rigidly secured as by welding to the outside of housing sleeve 75. These lugs are dimensioned and spaced to support the booster packages in proper position. When high explosive housing 50 is positioned around the detonator and trigger housing, this 'being illustrated in FIGURE 11, booster packages 140 and 141 will be retained against outward movement by high explosive housing wall 51. A snug fit is provided between the various housings on opposite sides of the booster packages. The shock wave from the explosion of the booster charges will be transmitted through the wall of the booster housing and wall 51 of the high explosive housing. Whatever spaces there may be between the opposing housing walls will be filled with water which will transmit the shock wave very efiiciently.

A suggested procedure for assembling the detonator and trigger mechanism and housing will now be given.

Starting with rod 93, it being understood that this is free of all parts, nut 87 may be tightened against the shoulder provided by the top of enlarged portion 95. This rod may be disposed above housing sleeve portion 77 containing the detonator and trigger spider assembly. It is understood that the detonator sleeves and cartridges are not in position in barrels 121 and 122. Portion 930 of rod 93 is first threaded through spider hub portions 1tl5a and 105b in succession. Rod 93 is turned to align slots 96 and 97 with bell-crank trip portions 1125. Since the detonator cartridges are not in position, the bellcranks can be moved so that trip portions 11217 can pass over shoulders 99 and 1th) at the bottom of guide slots 96 and 97 in enlarged portion 95 of rod 93'. Once trip portions 1112b of the bell-cranks are in guide slots 196 and 197, rod 93 will be locked against turning.

Spring 136 is now moved up into position below spider hub portion 10512 and nut 88 is tightened against the shoulder provided at the bottom of rod portion 9311. Nut 88 at this point may be used to compress spring 130 and if the weight of housing ring 77 and the spider assembly is insuflicient, it may be necessary to hold down ring 77 to keep spring 138 compressed. With nut 88 in position, lower flexible wall 83 is disposed so that beaded edge 85 is against the bottom face of nut 88. Nut 89 can now be run up and tightened to lock beaded edge 85 in position. It is now necessary to dispose bottom inner housing sleeve 76 in position below sleeve 77. It is understood that up to now and until the outer beaded edge of flexible wall is clamped, the outer portions of the flexible wall member can be tucked or folded inwardly out of the way. It is now desirable to dispose bottom inner housing sleeve 76 below sleeve 77 and outer beaded edge 81 of the bottom of flexible wall 83 may be pulled out and disposed below the bottom edge of sleeve 76. This may be done by inverting the spider. Bottom end plate 72 can now be positioned against the bottom face of nut 89, it being understood that the beaded edge 81 of bottom wall portion 83 is maintained in position. A short safety pin similar to rod 132, or rod 132 itself, may now be passed through the aperture in solid end portion 131 of rod 93. The partial assembly is now turned to be normally upright.

It is now necessary to load the detonator barrels with the sleeves and cartridges through openings 77a. The sleeves are tightly screwed down (the outer ends of the sleeves may have recesses for spanner wrenches) and serve to retain the detonator cartridges firmly in position. This position is such that the outer ends of the detonator cartridges are inside the cylindrical plane formed by the outer face of housing sleeve 77. V V 7 Outer housing sleeve 75 may now be slid over the outside of inner housings 77 and 76, it being understood'that a suitable force is provided to prevent the spider assembly from rising in response to any compression of spring 130. This downward force may be applied to the top of rod 93 and be communicated to the spider through the bottom face of nut 87 engaging hub portion 105a of the spider. It is assumed that when outer housing 7'5 is positioned, beaded edge 81 of bottom flexible wall 83 will be kept properly positioned or may even be pulled out from inside of sleeve 76 to the position illustrated in FIGURE -6. The exact order when the beaded edge of the bottom of flexible member 83 will be pulled-out will depend upon convenience during certain steps of the assembly. It is now in order to position top inner sleeve 78 of the housing. Top flexible wall 82 may now be positioned and nut 86 tightened to clamp the inner beaded edge. Outer beaded edge Stl of top flexible wall 82 can now be pulled out to the position shown, after which top plate '70 may be disposed in position. The concentric beads at the peripheries of the wall members will be convenient in proper positioning of the parts.

Bolts 58 can now be moved into position, it being understood that the supporting jigs and tables have clearance openings for the bolts. Inner nuts 61 and 66 can be tightened, after which the entire assembly illustrated in FIGURE 6 isnow self contained. It is now possible to fill the housing with a liquid. The liquid to be used may be mineral oil, silicone oil or any other suitable material. The liquid can be introduced by connecting a supply hose to the threaded top end of rod 93. The detonator and trigger assembly is turned up-side-down and liquid run into the housing. The liquid will go through the bore in rod 93-and discharge through openings 137 into the interior of the housing. Air within the housing will be forced through openings 137 and up and out through the passage normally occupied by plug 138, which plug has not as yet been applied. When the system is full of liquid,

pouring some into the top end of rod 93. Fixture 28 is tightly screwed into position and serves to seal the liquid within the housing and also functions as a grip or handle for moving the entire assembly.

The booster charges may now be put in position and the outer high explosive housing may be positioned and the entire mine can be bolted'together by outer nuts 60 Y and 67.

Assuming that the mine is in water and that safety rod 132 has been pulled free of end 131 of rod 93, the mine will be ready for firing. The force for firing the mine is communicated to fixture 28. When fixture 28 is pulled longitudinally of rod 93, spring will be compressed. This is because nut 88 will travel with rod 93. At the same time, the top nuts with the flexible wall 82 will also move upwardly so that there will be no tendency to exert compressive force on the liquid within the housing. As-

suming that the force applied to fixture 28 is great and and sudden-in practice this could be a sudden pull of the order of 25 to 100 pounds-the inertia of the entire mine will be so great that spring 138 will be compressed. With sufiicient upward movement of rod 93, shoulders 99 and 100 will force parts 112!) of the trigger upwardly until tripping occurs. Springs 114, which need not be very strong, will move the bell-cranks with suificient force to cause firing. For special situations, it may be necessary to use springs of corresponding strength.

It is thus evident that the mine embodying the present invention is relatively insensitive to slow disturbances such as waves and thelike and will be fired only by a quick and powerful force applied to fixture 28.

End plates 70 and 72 with tubular extension will prevent rod portion 93 from cocking and thus will insure that rod 93 will move in a straight line. It is evident that the mine can be in any position for firing and need not be in upright position as illustrated. Referring to nuts "thick and compressible to provide good seals.

86 and 89 for example as top and bottom nuts is purely for ease of description and the position of the mine mechanism in FIGURE 6 is exemplary.

It is possible to avoid using any metal in the entire construction. Thus the spring can be of glass while the remaining parts can be of synthetic materials ranging from flexible sheet material such as synthetic rubber to strong rigid materials available on the market. Insofar as the inner annular wall for the firing mechanism chamber is concerned, this may be of rigid material thin enough to transmit the force of an explosion from the detonator to the booster and thick enough to be firm. The tie bolts may be of strong material such as steel, or if metal is to be avoided, then Bakelite or other rigid plastic may be used. The tie bolts need not be tensioned very much, since the flexible rubber top and bottom walls will be Inasmuch as the interior of the chamber will be filled with incompressible material such as liquid or solid material or plas tic, there will be no great pressure across the seals tending to permit leakage of liquid either in or out of the chamber. The guiding action of the end plates on the axially movable operating rod will prevent jamming of rod 93 during movement. It will be noted that the end plates 70 and 72 curve outwardly and thus provide the maximum separation between bearing surfaces for the operating rod. This insures stability of operation. The clearance between rod 93 and end plates can be as much as about inch.

The twin arrangement of trigger mechanisms and firing means insures a balanced mechanical action. It is possible to have more than two trigger mechanisms symmetrically disposed about operating rod 93. No great accuracy is required to insure the simultaneous operation of the several trigger mechanisms. In practice, it is possible that one trigger mechanism may operate ahead of the other and explode the entire mine.

It is also possible to have transverse passage 137 for rod 93 just below nut 87. Suitable registering clearance opening in spider hub portion 105a can be provided. The bore within tube 93 can be terminated just below the modified location of transverse passage 137. There will then be no need for plug 138 or opening 139. The hous ing can be filled from the top of rod 93, with air from the housing bubbling up in counterflow relation;

What is claimed is:

1. In an explosive type of mine, the combination of a housing having an outer cylindrical wall of firm material, end flexible walls contacting said outer wall edges to form a liquid tight seal, a spider like rigid end plate beyond each of said flexible walls rigidly supported at the edges of said cylindrical wall to form a rigid frame, a rod axially disposed with respect to said cylindrical wall and extending from the housing interior through said flexible walls and attached thereto and being guided in said end plates for longitudinal travel, said flexible walls and cylindrical wall providing a hermetically sealed housing, means for biasing said rod to one end position from which position said rod is movable over a limited range, normally uncocked trigger mechanism in said housing, means coupling said rod to said trigger mechanism so that predetermined movement of said rod from its biased position first cocks and then releases said trigger mechanism, detonator means fired by said trigger operation and means including a high explosive charge disposed around the outside of said cylindrical wall for responding to the explosive effects initiated by said detonator discharge.

2. The construction according to claim 1 wherein a sealing liquid within said housing is provided, said sealing liquid filling the entire free region within said housing. 3. The construction according to claim 2 wherein said last named means includes at least one booster charge disposed as a package in space between the outside of the outer cylindrical wall and the high explosive charge.

4. The construction according to claim 3 wherein means externally of said housing are provided for safety locking said rod to its biased position, said safety locking means being manually removable by rope from a distance to arm said mine.

5. The construction according to claim 4 wherein said trigger mechanism and detonator means are carried by a spider rigidly supported within said cylindrical outer wall.

6. In an explosive type of mine, the combination of a housing having an outer cylindrical Wall of rigid material extending the full length of said housing, an inner cylindrical housing wall disposed immediately inside of said outer wall, said inner housing wall having at least one opening through the wall, a detonator barrel rigidly supported within said inner wall and extending radially from the opening in said inner wall, detonator cartridge means rigidly secured in said barrel, the cartridge extending radially from within said opening in said rigid wall toward the axis of said housing with the inner end of said cartridge being the percussion end, normally uncooked trigger means carried by said detonator barrel support means, said trigger means including a firing pin for cooperation with the inner end of said detonator cartridge, flexible end Walls contacting the edges of said annular wall to form a liquid tight seal therewith, a spider like rigid end plate beyond each of said flexible walls rigidly supported at the edges of said annular wall to form a rigid frame therewith, a rod axially disposed with respect to said annular wall and extending around the housing interior through said flexible walls and being attached thereto and being guided in said end plates for longitudinal travel, said flexible walls and cylindrical wall providing a hermetically sealed housing, means for biasing said rod to one end position, from which position said rod is longitudinally movable over a limited range, means on said rod for cooperating with said trigger means to cock said trigger and fire the same upon predetermined longitudinal movement of said rod from its biased position, and means including a high explosive charge disposed around the outside of said cylindrical Wall for responding to the explosive effects initiated by said detonator cartridge discharge.

7. The construction according to claim 6 wherein a pair of diametrically opposed detonator barrels are provided with the inner wall having diametrically opposed openings for said barrels, each barrel having its individual detonator cartridge and wherein diametrically opposed trigger means are provided.

8. In an explosive type of mine, the combination of a housing having an outer cylindrical wall of rigid material, an inner wall of rigid material within said outer housing Wall, two diametrically opposed openings through said inner wall only, a spider rigidly supported on said inner wall and having two detonator barrels diametrically opposed and having open ends opposite the inner Wall openings, a cartridge assembly in each detonator barrel with said detonator cartridge having the inner end as the percussion end and having the outer end terminating within the opening in said inner wall, two diametrically opposed triggers carried by said spider for cooperation with the opposed detonator cartridges, said triggers being normally uncooked, end flexible walls contacting said rigid housing wall edges to form a liquid tight seal there- 'with, a spider like rigid end plate beyond each of said .said rod is longitudinally movable against its bias over a limited range, said rod having longitudinal diametrically opposed slots terminating in shoulders, said trigger means including trip means riding in said slots as said rod is moved from its biased position, said trip means engaging said shoulders upon travel of said rod from its biased position, further travel of said rod resulting in said shoulders operating the trip portions of said triggers to cook and thereafter fire said triggers upon additional movement of said rod away from its biased position, and means including a high explosive charge disposed around the outside of said cylindrical wall for responding to the explosive efiects initiated by said detonator discharge.

9. The construction according to claim 8 wherein said hermetically sealed housing is filled with a liquid.

10. The construction according to claim 9 wherein said spring biased means for said rod comprises a coil spring disposed around said rod and having one end braced against the adjacent rigid end plate at one end of said housing and having the other end of said spring braced against the spider supporting said detonator and trigger means.

11. The construction according to claim 10 wherein said outer cylindrical wall of the housing is provided with support means and wherein booster charges are supported by said support means outside of said housing and opposite the detonator cartridges, said booster charges lying between said housing and the high explosive charge disposed around the outside.

12. The construction according to claim 11 wherein said rod has a bore extending from one end thereof outside of said housing to at least a portion of the rod which is within said housing, said rod having a transverse passage providing for liquid flow betweenthe rod bore and housing interior and means for sealing the open end of said rod.

13. In an explosive type of mine, the combination of a housing having an outer cylindrical wall of firm material, end flexible Walls contacting said outer Wall edges to form a liquid tight seal, a spider like rigid end plate beyond each of said flexible walls rigidly supported at the edges of said cylindrical wall to form a rigid frame, a rod axially disposed with respect to said cylini i drical wall and extending from the housing interior through said flexible walls and attached thereto and being guided in said end plates for longitudinal travel, said flexible walls and cylindrical wall providing a hermetically sealed housing, means for biasing said rod to one end position from which position said rod is movable over a limited range, normally uncooked trigger mechanism in said housing, means coupling said rod to said trigger mechanism so that predetermined movement of said rod from its biased position first cocks and then releases said trigger mechanism, detonator means fired by said trigger operation and means including a high explosive charge disposed around the outside of said cylindrical wall for responding to the explosive effects initiated by said detonator discharge, said rod having a bore extending from one end thereof outside of said housing to at least a portion of the rod which is within said housing, said rod having a transverse passage providing for liquid flow between the rod bore and housing interior, a liquid filler for,

said housing and sealing means for the rod end having the bore, said construction permitting liquid to be introduced into the assembled housing.

14. The construction according to claim 13 wherein said rod bore extends to a rod portion beyond the housing, said transverse passage being located near one of the flexible walls, said rod having an additional opening near said other rod end, means for sealing said additional opening, said housing being susceptible to introducing the liquid filling by disposing the mine so that-the rod is vertical with the transverse passage within the housing being near the top of the space Within the housing, the liquid being introduced at the lowest available place on the rod and air being free to escape at the highest available point when said sealing means for the bore at the two ends are removed.

No references cited. 

1. IN AN EXPLOSIVE TYPE OF MINE, THE COMBINATION OF A HOUSING HAVING AN OUTER CYLINDRICAL WALL OF FIRM MATERIAL, END FLEXIBLE WALLS CONTACTING SAID OUTER WALL EDGES TO FORM A LIQUID TIGHT SEAL, A SPIDER LIKE RIGID END PLATE BEYOND EACH OF SAID FLEXIBLE WALLS RIGIDLY SUPPORTED AT THE EDGES OF SAID CYLINDRICAL WALL TO FORM A RIGID FRAME, A ROD AXIALLY DISPOSED WITH RESPECT TO SAID CYLINDRICAL WALL AND EXTENDING FROM THE HOUSING INTERIOR THROUGH SAID FLEXIBLE WALLS AND ATTACHED THERETO AND BEING GUIDED IN SAID END PLATES FOR LONGITUDINAL TRAVEL, SAID FLEXIBLE WALLS AND CYLINDRICAL WALL PROVIDING A HERMETICALLY SEALED HOUSING, MEANS FOR BIASING SAID ROD TO ONE END POSITION FROM WHICH POSITION SAID ROD IS MOVABLE OVER A LIMITED RANGE, NORMALLY UNCOCKED TRIGGER MECHANISM IN SAID HOUSING, MEANS COUPLING SAID ROD TO SAID TRIGGER MECHANISM SO THAT PREDETERMINED MOVEMENT OF SAID ROD FROM ITS BIASED POSITION FIRST COCKS AND THEN RELEASES SAID TRIGGER MECHANISM, DETONATOR MEANS FIRED BY SAID TRIGGER OPERATION AND MEANS INCLUDING A HIGH EXPLOSIVE CHARGE DISPOSED AROUND THE OUTSIDE OF SAID CYLINDRICAL WALL FOR RESPONDING TO THE EXPLOSIVE EFFECTS INITIATED BY SAID DETONATOR DISCHARGE. 